Less than a week until Christmas! Is it just me or has time flown by this year? This is such a fun time of year where family and friends come to visit, hearts are warm and laughs are plentiful.

It can be difficult to focus on a specific task during this time because so much is going on. It’s important to remember the key things that you need to accomplish and make a list!

With company coming, one of the first tasks is to get the guestrooms organized and ready. You will want to start with the basics.

Foremost, you want to make sure that you have clean bed linens and that the bed is made up with decorative pillows and a cozy throw over the end. If you are shooting for a holiday theme, find pillows and a throw that accent your current color scheme, while also capturing the holidays. It’s always important to make sure that the room feels homey and the bed is the first point of focus as you walk in a room.

After you’ve set up the bed, you may want to hang art or a mirror above, to pull the room together. Being in Seattle is such a treat because we have so many artists around us. The West Seattle Junction hosts the Art Walk every second Thursday and many shops still have up the art from the last walk. Try to find something that ties in with your pillows and color scheme. You don’t want both the pillows and your art to be really busy, so pick one or the other to have a strong pattern and leave the other more simple.

You also want to make sure there is a bed side table with a lamp that is easy to get to and an outlet that is easy to get to; if not, plug in a power strip for easy accessibility.

Next you will want to stock up the hangers in the closet and make sure that there is drawer space. A nice addition to the drawers would be sachets for a nice, fresh smell. Another fun add on could be an extra robe and slippers so that the guests truly feel at home.

The final decorative touches are the best part! This time of year, you could set out mini trees around the room (always in groups of at least 3). To add some extra color, you can get a couple of vases and fill them with flowers such as poinsettias or white lilies.

For the last few things in the bedroom, you could add a few candles or an oil diffuser so it smells nice and clean.

With the room all set up, smelling nice and decorated, your guests will surely vote you best host!